The Battle of All Time
by Carnath
Summary: I just don't know if I can continue this one. It's sit idle for so long, i just don't seem to have the will to finish it. maybe a little reader support would help...
1. Chapter 1

Mega man Legends

Final Fantasy 6

Final Fantasy 7

Super Metroid

Good Characters:

Mega Man: Mega Man, Roll

Final Fantasy 6: Sabin, Terra, Shadow, Setzer, Mog

Final Fantasy 7: Cloud, Tifa, Cid, Barett, Vincent

Super Metroid: Samus Aran

Evil Characters:

Mega Man: Bass (Brief)

Final Fantasy 6: Shadow Kefka

Final Fantasy 7: Sepiroth

Super Metroid: Ridley, 2 metroids, Mother Brain

Not evil, but not good. Somewhere in the middle:

Mega Man: Babu, Tron & Tiesel Bonne (w/4 servbots)

World of War: Final Fantasy 7

Forward: To the readers. To fully understand the following fanfic, you should have played the following games, Mega man Legends, Final Fantasy 3 (6 in Japan) & 7 and finally Super Metroid (or any Metroid game). I created this fanfic because I really enjoyed these games, or the characters in them. This fanfic takes place in a variety of times for each game. I should first point out that I **believe** Mega Man Legends simply follows Mega Man 8, seeing as how Mega man simply lost his memory. Tron and Tiesel have just acquired the "Ultimate Treasure" and are secretly following Mega man. Kefka has just been defeated, and somehow magic was revived, almost. Aeris has been killed and Cloud now understands his past. Sepiroth is still alive but the group can't even get off the ground, never mind confront him. As for Samus, the hatchling is long dead, but once again, Mother Brain has awoken with the aid of Ridley. If you have any questions, feel free to e-mail me at carnath@hotmail.com. Now without further adieu, I present to you, "TBD"

Chapter 1

                Sabin awoke to a bright sunny morning. The clouds floated softly by as the falcon flew through the air. He walked out to the deck and saw that only Setzer was awake, at the controls like always.

                "Welcome to the world of the living." Setzer said without looking back. His hair was straight back as the wind whipped around him. After the defeat of Kefka, the group had somewhat split apart. Sabin still preferred the open plains rather than Figaro Castle, so decided to stay on board the Falcon with Setzer and a few others. Amongst those others were Terra, the green-haired woman with Esper blood, Shadow, the dark ninja who had taken a temporary home on the Falcon, and Mog, the white moogle which was simply catching a ride back to Narshe. Locke and Celes had gone to settle down and start a family, Strago and Relm had returned to Thamasa, Edgar to Figaro castle, and they assumed Gau and Umaro to their prefered domains. Sabin walked to one side of the Falcon and peered over the edge at the waters below.

                "Fine day for flying, wouldn't you say?" Setzer said, looking at Sabin for the first time.

                "Yeah, great." Sabin said, only half-listening.

                "Something on your mind?" Setzer asked, putting the controls on auto for a while. He walked over and stood beside Sabin.

                "It's nothing." Sabin said. He had been somewhat distant lately. No one could explain it, but they knew something was bothering him. He ran a hand through his blond hair and walked back inside the ship. Setzer only watched him go, returned to the controls, returned the ship to manual, and shifted course.

*                              *                              *

                "Mega man? Are you awake yet?" Came the female voice from outside the door.

                "No. Now go away." Mega man said, turning over in his bed. His last adventure had been a tiring one. The Bonne family had given him quite the run around, but they proved to be not so bad in the end by saving him. He heard the door open and footsteps get closer. His desk lamp clicked on and a bright light appeared in his face.

                "Come on lazy. It's time to get up. We're getting close to the next island and we're gonna go ashore for a while."

                "Come on Roll. Leave me alone. Just five minute more." Mega man said, turning away from the light.

                "Five minutes. Then you're getting out of that bed." Roll said, walking back out. Mega man turned over and clicked off the light then sat up in bed. The disturbance had woken him up so there was no point in trying to get back to sleep. He got up and stretched. He left his helmet on the table and went up to the control room. He yawned as he entered the room. There was a small island on the horizon, but growing bigger as they approached quickly.

                "What's the name of this island?" Mega man said, moving over to the window.

                "I'm not sure. It's not on the map, so it might be uninhabited. But it'll let us get onto some solid ground for a while." She said. Mega man's world was mostly covered in water, so land was usually a welcome sight. Not to mention there could be treasure or adventure awaiting them. A soft blip appeared on Roll's scanner, but went unnoticed. Quite a ways behind them was a small craft floating in the water, following Mega man's ship.

                "Tiesel, it looks like they're headed for a small island. Maybe we can finally sell that refractor and get a new airship." Tron said looking at her brother.

                "Hmm... Good. All right everybody, head for that island. Just remember to stay out of their scanning range Tron." Tiesel said, while sitting in his chair.

                "Right!" Tron said, slowing the engines a bit. A slight frown crossed her face as she did. "Tiesel, what if there are no towns on this island?" Tiesel stood up and looked at her.

"Then we'll just steal their airship so that we don't have to buy our own!" He said laughing. 

*                              *                              *

                "Cid could you keep the profanity down a little?" Tifa asked as she sat back down on the ground.

                "&%$@&. Stupid thing. Why won't it $@%% work?" Cid said as he continued to tinker with the Highwind. He stopped only for a second to light another cigarette then went back to work.

                "Cloud, can't you..." She pleaded, but he quickly raised his hands.

                "Not me. I'm not getting involved in that argument again." He said. Barett also quickly looked away when she turned to him. She crossed her arms and started to pout. Cloud looked at Barett and they both shrugged. Off in the distance, Vincent was heading back from his scouting. He stunk of gun oil as he reached the group, and he had some blood on his pant leg.

                "Anything to report?" Cloud asked, tossing him some cure materia.

                "Just the usual monsters lurking around. And don't worry, it's not my blood." He said with a grin. "How's it going here?"

                "You mean you didn't hear Mr. Loudmouth? I thought they woulda heard him all the way to Midgar." Tifa said, motioning towards Cid. Cloud stifled a laugh and Barett grinned. Vincent merely nodded and sat on a rock.

                "That good huh?" He said, tossing the materia back to Cloud. Tifa just nodded muttering something about his lack of intelligence. Suddenly Cid came back out and flopped on the ground.

                "Well pull up a chair and crack a beer. We ain't going nowhere today. %&*@! thing..." Cid said, looking at the Highwind. Cloud laid back and closed his eyes for awhile.

*                              *                              *

                Samus piloted her space ship into the starport and went inside. She walked down a few hallways, a few people looking at her as she dragged a pirate behind her. She reached the bar and went in.

                "Somebody order a Pirate leader?" She said, holding up the carcass of an alien pirate. Most of the people in the bar ignored her, but a man at a table stood up and came towards her.  
                "I requested him alive so he could pay for his crimes." The man said, a sneer forming on his lips.

                "Sorry, but when it comes to me or him, it won't be me. His pals weren't too appreciative either. I'll need the pay just to repair my ship." She threw the alien to the ground and held out her hand. "I'll take my credits now."

                "He isn't alive, so you don't get paid!" The man said, growling at the bounty hunter. A few gasps were heard and the bartender dropped the bottle he was holding. A few people spoke up; "don't be a fool" and "do you know who that is?" were a few comments. The man stood firm. Samus reached forward and grabbed the man by his coat, lifting him off the ground.

                "Is that your final decision?" Samus said, her voice dark and threatening. The man started to sweat, and looked worried. He reached into his pocket and produced a pouch. She let him go and opened the pouch. "Where's the rest?" She demanded, lifting her cannon to aim at the man. 

                "Please! I'm just a poor man. I couldn't afford what you were asking. I tried to get more, but that's all I could get." He begged, getting on his knees. Samus heard another form enter the bar and the room went completely silent.

                "Samus-san, I thought I taught you better than that." Came a soft voice. Samus dropped the bag of credits and whirled around.

                "What are you doing here? You shouldn't be in a place like this." She said, rushing to her old friend.

                "I came to check up on you Samus. It has been so long since you visited." The bird-like creature exclaimed, his eyes soft and caring.

                "Old bird, I'm sorry. My work has kept me so busy." She said, bowing her head. She turned to the man still on his knees and said softly, "Take your credits. He wasn't that much of a challenge anyway." The man thanked her profusely, and ran from the bar with his money.

                "Thank you Samus. Now come with me. I have something of importance I need to show you." They walked back to Samus' ship and went inside. "Now what I am about to tell you will most likely shock you."

                "I don't like the sounds of this. Tell me the pirates aren't attacking your race again." She said worried, taking off her helmet. Her long, blonde hair fell around her shoulders and she placed her helmet on a seat next to her.

                Watching the bounty hunter for her reaction, he produced a red scale that belonged to only one type of creature.  "Much worse I'm afraid. Somehow, Mother Brain has returned. And Ridley is with her." A blank stare and her gaping jaw were all that he needed for an answer.

Author's Notes: Okay as you can guess, Chapter 1 is just an intro to the worlds and what's basically going on. The real action will start shortly. The following chapters will depict more, one by one, each character(s) mission and some action. Hope you like 'em.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

                A strong wind picked up as Mega man's airship landed in a grassy field. As the engines died down, Roll opened the side door and lowered the ladder. She climbed down and stepped onto the grass. She closed her eyes as the warm sun bathed over her. Mega man followed shortly after, but simply jumped from the door landing with a whump.

                "There's a thing called a ladder you know." Roll said, looking at him. He shrugged then walked around the clearing. There were a few trees, but nothing of interest in the immediate area. He started walking into a forest, Roll not far behind him, when he came across a path. It hadn't been used in a while, but it was there none the less.

                "Looks like there at least used to be life on this island. Which way do you recommend we go?" Mega man asked, looking at Roll. She looked up both paths and shrugged.

                "I'm not indian, but it looks to me like whoever or whatever it was, was heading in that direction." She said, pointing to her right. Mega man nodded, and without hesitating, started running down the path. "Mega man! Wait for me!" She took off after him, but he was easily outdistancing her. She heard him cry out ahead, and she picked up her pace. She saw him just standing ahead, his arm cannon raised.

                "Roll stay back!!" He called out, letting off a few shots. She saw him dodge some return fire, and hide in the forest.

                "What is it?" She asked. She had to roll out of the way as the tree she hid behind was suddenly vaporized. "It's... it's a Reaverbot. Above ground? Mega man, be careful. He's huge!" Mega man hardly heard her as he dodged and fired. This was indeed a big reaverbot. He recalled the ones he had fought on the previous island, and even the largest wasn't this big. The battle continued Mega man too agile to be hit, but the reaverbot too powerful to be damaged. They crashed through trees as they moved across the land. It wasn't long before they reached the water and Mega man realized the Reaverbot was trying to force him into the water to reduce his mobility. He tried to jump to the left, but the Reaverbot finally landed a hit with a huge arm and Mega man was sent flying out into the waves.

                "Mega man!!!!" Roll screamed as he was flung into the waters. The Reaverbot reared on her and fired a laser. It hit her and she was thrown into a tree. The tree broke where she hit and she fell limply to the ground. Mega man sank to the bottom of the ocean floor, but since he was near an island it wasn't too deep. He started climbing back up when he saw the Reaverbot peering down at him. A hatch opened on the head and a head popped out.

                "It's been a while, Mega jerk." Came the voice. The person was covered in black and purple armor and he had menacing purple scars on his face.

                "Do I know you?" Mega man said. Since he required no air, he could still talk underwater.

                "Wha...? Don't tell me you don't remember me. I'm your greatest rival!" He yelled at Mega man. Mega man made it to where his upper body was above the surface.

                "I don't have any rivals. At least not that I know of." Mega man said. "What's your name, stranger?" Roll stirred and sat up, holding her head in pain. She took in the situation and looked where Mega man was looking.

                "BASS!!! It's not possible!" She said, her hand going to her back as she fell back down.

                "Well hiya sweet cakes. Glad someone recalls a familiar face. What's with blue boy here?" Bass said.

                "He lost his memory. Leave him alone. Don't you know Wily's given up? He even owns a boat shop and helped us in a previous mission." She said. Mega man stared between the two, trying to make sense of what was transpiring. Suddenly a soft roar was heard in the distance. A ship was approaching, fast. Mega man looked out into the water and groaned.

                "Roll, it's them. They must have been following us. But shouldn't they be slowing down?" Mega man said, starting to step away from the water edge. Roll also started moving away.

                "Them? Who's them?" Bass said as the boat sped towards the shoreline.

(Aboard the boat)

                "I know we gotta slow down but I'm telling you Tiesel, there's nothing I can do. The engines won't respond and nav is shot." Tron said, watching the shore getting closer.

                "You just want to interfere in that battle and help HIM again don't you?" Tiesel said getting angry.

                "Oh brother. Try for yourself!" Tron said, grabbing onto something to brace herself. Tiesel did indeed try the controls and they were not functioning at all.

                "It's too late anyway. We're gonna craaaaaash!" Tiesel grabbed onto the closest thing by him, a chair, and prepared to run aground.

(Back on land)

            Bass saw the ship heading right for him and got back inside his robot. But as before the thing was far too bulky to move quickly and the boat slammed into one of its legs. The reaverbot's leg was torn from the body and the whole thing started to topple into the water. There was a tremendous crash as the reaverbot slammed into the water, and Roll was sprayed with seawater. When she opened her eyes, the reaverbot had had it. Bass was crawling out, badly injured. A door opened on the boat and a few servbots fell out. And in the distance, under one of the reaverbots huge legs, was a blue hand stretched out towards safety.f


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

                "That's impossible!" Samus finally said. "Doesn't that creature ever die? Hasn't she caused me enough grief?" She got up and walked around the room. Her friend merely stood there.

                "As much as this disturbs you, we should act quickly. She was reincarnated, but not in this galaxy. She threatens that of another race." He said. She looked at him oddly.

                "How did she get to this new galaxy old bird?" Samus asked starting up her ship engines.

                "That is one question I can not answer. Let your emotions guide you." He said. She closed her eyes, relaxed, and let her thoughts control her hands. Her friend came up and looked at the co-ordinates she had set. "A good place to start looking." She opened up her eyes and saw that she had set the ship to arrive near where Metroid had been the last time. She set the machine on autopilot, then sat down to reacquaint herself with her old friend.

                "How do you know she has returned and not just Ridley?" Samus asked, breaking the silence. She was still in a slight state of shock, but calming down with every minute.

                "I saw it in a vision. You may have recalled how you destroyed Ridley and then Mother Brain. Well unfortunately, they have the ability to resurrect each other. So while you were traveling to Tourian, she had enough time to revive Ridley. Though it takes far more time for Mother Brain to be resurrected by Ridley. That's why nothing has happened until now." He explained, his head lowering at the thought of the endless wars.

                "If you saw them, then how come you don't know where they are?" She asked, not doubting his powers of vision, but wishing they were wrong.

                "It is a place even I do not know where. All I know is that Mother Brain is already there. Ridley is on his journey to that place." 

                "So where's Ridley then?" She asked. Almost as if on cue, her ship jolted to the side and buzzers and sirens started going off. "What the hell? The left engine was just destroyed. But how…" She cut herself off as a familiar red blur darted off into space.

                "Samus-san, what is it?" The old chozo asked, managing to stand after being knocked to the floor.

                "It's Ridley. He's heading into a black hole. I'm following him, but you're not." She said, looking at her friend.

                "What do you mean I'm not?! Samus you may need my help." He said as he was encased in an escape pod.

                "Sorry old bird. I can't put you into danger. I'll be fine." She said as she sent her friend towards the nearest star port.

                "Samus. Please…." He said to the darkness as he saw her follow Ridley into the black hole. "..be careful."

Chapter 4

                Shadow stumbled out the door as the Falcon lunged to one side.

                "I never did like the air." Shadow said, falling onto the deck.

                "This storm came outta nowhere. How are the others?" Setzer said, trying to keep control over his flying machine.

                "Well Terra is below with sickness. Sabin was trying to make his way up here as well. Lost sight of him. As for the moogle, I haven't seen him in a while." Shadow stood up, but was again thrown to the floor as a gust of rain and wind slammed against the Falcon. He was near the rail on the side and saw that they weren't anywhere near Narshe.

                "You lost?" Shadow growled, picking himself up and managing to stay standing.

                "Me? Lost? Hardly. I changed course. For Sabin's sake. I know what's got him down. He misses Figaro Castle. Unless the storm has put us off course again, we should be there soon." Setzer said, turning the wheel again. Suddenly there was a loud crack as lightning blazed upwards through the deck and tore a massive hole in the blimp. Setzer was launched backwards by the force and went clean through the door towards the lower decks. Shadow, on the other hand, wasn't quite as lucky. Since he had been so close to the side, the force threw him over the rail. The only thing keeping Shadow alive was his sword wedged deep into the hull as he hung over the side. A window beside him opened up and a green-faced Terra looked out.

                "What in the hell... Shadow??! Are you okay?" Terra said, a shocked look on her face.

                "For the moment, yes. Though a little assistance would be appreciated." He said. Another wind gust almost ripped him from the aircraft as it started to plummet. Terra grabbed him and pulled him in through the window. Both were puffing as she closed the window.

                "You get yourself into more situations then I care for." She said, picking herself up.

                "The reaper got pretty close that time. He may yet succeed tonight." Shadow said, helping her over to her bed. "You should prepare yourself. The ship is badly damaged and we are going down."

                "Say what? Where's Setzer?" She cried, jumping up.

                "Unconscious I imagine. He was thrown through a door when we were hit. I shall tend to him. Find Sabin and the moogle. Let them know." Shadow disappeared out the door. She grabbed her amulet off the ground, which had been on a table, and hurried out the door. She found Sabin rubbing his head while leaning against one wall. The ship was leaning incredibly and it was difficult to walk.

                "Are you okay?" She said, sliding, more than walking, towards him.

                "Yeah, just taken by surprise." She didn't even have to tell him they were about to crash. "There wasn't supposed to be a storm between us and Narshe. What's going on?" He said, climbing towards the deck again. Terra followed, using a railing to pull herself up.

                "I'm not sure. All I know is Shadow was just about thrown over. His sword nearly made me an extra hole in the head." She said with a half-grin. He looked back at her.           

"Why don't you just morph and fly up there? Someone should get to Setzer as soon as possible." He said, attaching his claws and using them to climb the now nearly vertical floor.

                "What about Mog? Have you seen him lately?" She asked, remaining in her human form. Since she hadn't been in Esper form for quite a while, it would be hard to control.

                "Aw crap. Forgot about him. Tell you what. I'll get to Setzer, you find Mog." Sabin said, reaching the door. "Meet you on the deck." He hauled himself up and out the door and walked on the wall over to the next staircase. It would lead to the top deck where Setzer should have been. Sabin dug his claws into the staircase, and started working his way up.

                "He'll kill you for that." Shadow said from behind Sabin. Sabin looked down and saw Shadow rest a limp Setzer against the wall. A soft whine from behind showed Interceptor was sliding around the cabin, unable to keep a grip on the wooden floor.

                "If he doesn't die from the crash first. Have you figured out how we're supposed to escape our death?" Sabin said, jumping back down.

                "No. My magic skills are less then adequate without the espers help. The only one who would be able to warp us out would be Terra."

                "She went to find Mog. We should head for the deck. I told her to meet me there when I found you two." Sabin said. He looked at Setzer. "You gonna be able to manage?" With that, Shadow produced a warp stone. It had lost most of its glimmer so he knew it would be weak, but it would get the three to the deck. Sabin took the stone and concentrated. They appeared on the deck, and waited for Terra.

                Meanwhile Terra had felt something inside her. She knew what it was. By thinking of her esper form she had woken it from its dormancy and it was screaming for freedom. She fought to control it, but decided it would be better to set it free. Her body changed into the half esper and she flew up above the deck. She zoomed through a wall and ended up in the engine room. No moogle here. She continued blasting through rooms till she came to the dance hall. There was Mog, practicing his dance skills. He was so engrossed in it he didn't see Terra. There was a shudder as a large piece fell off the back of the ship. Terra had done so much damage to the ship it was falling apart. She grabbed Mog and flew to the deck. She saw the others waiting for her and flew over to them.

                "Good work Terra. Now get us the hell outta here!" Sabin said, seeing the ground for the first time getting VERY close. But Terra, in her until recently unused esper form, couldn't understand him. All she knew was that there was danger and that her friends needed help. She went to the center of the group and cupped her hands and closed her eyes. Her lips danced in a fury of magic words and soon a blue aura surrounded her. She cast the spell of Warp, however a large bolt of lightning struck the amulet she wore around her neck. She looked up into the sky and muttered "Ramuh? What are you doing?" There was a bright flash as her power increased 100 fold so instead of teleporting just the group, it took the falcon as well. The only thing is, where they ended up wasn't anywhere like they had been before.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 5

                The loud shots of Barrett's gunarm echoed out into the plains. He was bored. Much more than he had been when the Highwind was simply offline. Now he had nothing to do at all. He fired again as he tossed another one of Cid's empty beer cans into the air. Cloud walked over and unleashed his Omnislash on the can before it hit the ground. Pieces of aluminum fell to the ground as Cloud resheathed his sword.

                "Any news?" Barrett said, sitting on a rock. 

                "No. The Highwind is gonna need someone more than Cid. It's screwed up pretty bad. That last attack on the Ultima Weapon really put us in a spot."

                "So how do we get extra help?" Barrett asked, not impressed that they might be stuck out here even longer.

                "Well Tifa was headed towards a Chocobo Farm not far from here. Though she's been gone a while." Cloud said as he rolled a fire materia around in his hand. The green jewel glistened in the sunlight, almost screaming to be used. He placed it back in his sword, and started walking towards a tree.

                "Hey Cloud, what do you figure that is?" Barrett said, looking south. There was a small dust cloud, with what looked like a small figure causing the cloud. It was getting closer as well.

                "Hard to say. But I do know one thing for sure. I'm not gonna wait for it to get here." He dug in his pocket and pulled out a sense materia. He took out the fire materia that was in his sword and placed the yellow one in its place. He raised his sword and the yellow materia began glowing.

                "Well come on Cloud. What the hell is it?" Barrett said impatiently.

                "There's two things out there. One is Tifa. The other is…. I don't know. I can't scan it." He said, placing attack materia in his sword. Tifa finally came into view on a Chocobo moving VERY fast. A creature that looked similar to a red Bahamut, came into view and swung it's spiked tail at Tifa. She avoided the attack, and kept the Chocobo moving. Barrett raised his gun arm and aimed at the beast. He took a shot, and though it was a direct hit, all it did was get the monster pissed off. Cloud started running towards Tifa as the Chocobo was sent flying, badly wounded. Tifa rolled across the ground as she slowed to a stop. She was slow to get up, but was still able to get up.

                "TIFA!" Cloud called out as he quickened his pace. He started concentrating as he got closer and his sword started to glow. "Blade Beam…" he muttered as he slashed at the beast, though he was still a bit far away. A rainbow colored beam arced and slammed into the beast as it swooped in to finish Tifa off. The blast knocked it out of the air and it fell to the ground. Tifa got up and started running towards Cloud, holding up a green materia. She threw it at him and he quickly attached the "Exit" materia to his sword.

                "Barrett, it's time to go!" Cloud said behind him. He heard the bulky man arrive and he used the Escape spell. The three disappeared in a flash of light as the creature was getting back up. Ridley looked at the spot where they had been.

                "Mother Brain thought Samus would be trouble… She's in for a shock." He thought as he flew back the way he had come.

Chapter 6

                "MEGA MAN!" Roll screamed as she ran towards his outstretched hand.

                "Ohhhh… that smarts." Bass said falling out of the Reaverbot. He landed on the soft sand, and did a quick systems check. His energy was low, and his armor could use some repair, but nothing major had occurred. "Now who's responsible for this?" He demanded, looking at the boat. Tron was the first to spill out, holding her head as a small trail of blood came from above her left eye. Tiesel followed shortly after, bruised, but no worse for wear. Bass started running at them, his arm cannon blazing. Babu flew out the door and took the shots, absorbing most of the damage.

                "Babuuu!" he said as he released a wave of homing missiles. Bass dodged as the missiles collided and exploded. Tron managed to regain her wits and jumped into the Geiselchaft.

                "Little boys shouldn't play with toys they can't control. That stupid Reaverbot damaged our boat beyond repair. Now you'll pay." She charged bass and grabbed him with the robots big hand. "I could crush you if I wanted to." She growled.

                "I doubt it. My armor is too tough for that thing." Bass said. Tiesel walked up beside Tron and looked at Bass.

                "Who are you and what do you want with Mega man?" He said, holding his arm in pain.

                "Not that it's any of your business, but the name's Bass. Him and I go way back. You could say we're old rivals. I've just been 'out of commission' for a while, thanks to him." Bass said, squirming to get free.

                "Where is he anyway?" Tron asked, looking around. She then saw Roll struggling against a Reaverbot leg and a blue hand sticking out from underneath. "Oh no!" She cried, running the Geiselchaft over to Roll. 

                "Leave him alone. He'll be lucky to be alive. He doesn't need you picking on him." Roll said, tears streaming down her face.

                "Knock it off blondie. He saved us and the world didn't he? I just want him out of the way of our work, not dead." She said as she started to use her robot to lift the Reaverbots leg up.

                "You've got a point there Tron." Tiesel said, going over to help.

                "Who asked you?" Bass said as he charged up his arm cannon. Then it dawned on him. "Wait a minute. If he's dead then I won't get the glory of the kill. You can't escape me that easily Mega man. I haven't gotten my revenge yet!" Bass said as he joined the others. With the four of them working together, the leg was lifted off Mega man and Roll managed to drag him out. There was no sign of life coming from the blue warrior. Roll started to shake him, trying to wake him up. She checked Mega man's energy, but the meter had been damaged.

                "Data!" Roll called out. Soon after, the monkey came bounding up and saw Mega man's condition.

                "This is serious roll. I don't know if I can help him." Data said, attaching a port into Mega man's side. He started pumping energy into Mega man's lifeless body, and after a few moments, the energy meter kicked in and it showed his energy at ¾ power. Data had to release the link as he was draining himself. Mega man stirred, and slowly opened his eyes.

                "Mega man? Are you alright?" Roll asked concerned. Mega man's eyes took in his surroundings, letting everything register. After a few moments, he focused on Bass and he jumped up.

                "Bass! I thought I totaled you. Roll, contact Rush, I need his help." He said as he leaped back and fired a shot.

                "Now this is more like it!" Bass said quickly joining in the battle. "Good to have you back mega-creep." The two dodged and fired, but Mega man was expecting Rush to show up. There was also something else. He couldn't target anymore like he had on the reaverbots. He also found his abilities had changed a bit. The latest weapons roll had made for him were useless. It was as if his whole system had undergone a change. But there was something else. He could charge up his shots, and not to mention there was a data file he could open. When he did, he got a list of a small assortment of weapons. He selected the Shadow Blade and hurled a shuriken type blade at Bass.

                "Damn it Wily, you were supposed to destroy the data on old bots when you gave up!" He fired his charged shot and it hit Mega man square in the head. He fell backwards and didn't get up right away.

                "Data what happened to him?" Roll asked watching helplessly. Tiesel and Tron were just as confused.

                "I'm not sure Roll. During the transfer I must have somehow sent some information from his previous activation." Data said trying to figure things out. Mega man got up, but he wasn't in battle form anymore. He looked around.

                "Roll? Data? Tron? What happened? Where am I?" he asked looking around.

                "Oh no you don't. Don't you fake a memory loss on me blue boy." Bass said charging at him. Tron grabbed him with the Gieselshaft and hurled him up against the reaverbot. He was knocked out upon impact.

                "Take five you pest." She said without looking back. "Now will someone tell me what the heck is going on here? I'm beyond confused!" 


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 7

                The falcon appeared in a large grassy field, about 5 feet above ground. It hit the ground with a crash and basically fell into 1000 pieces. The group jumped off the wreckage and landed softly on the ground. The spell had taken a lot out of Terra. She had returned to her human form and was unconscious.

                "What just happened?" Sabin asked, looking around. "Where'd the storm go? And furthermore, where are we?" They heard Setzer moan, and a worried look crossed his face as he looked form Setzer to the airship.

                "This could be bad…" Mog said as he saw Setzer open his eyes. Setzer sat up and looked at the group.

                "What happened? Why do you guys look so sad?" He remembered little from the storm then realized they were looking behind him. "Tell me the Falcon is okay. It's okay isn't it Sabin? Shadow? Anybody?" He slowly turned around and went pale. 

Trying to lighten the mood a bit, Sabin looked at Mog and said, "Hey Mog, he's as white as you." No one even heard the crack. Setzer was suddenly wracked by deep sobs as he looked at what remained of Daryl's airship. He had lost the last thing he had left from his friend.

"Not to seem insensitive, but the sky is growing dark. We should find some shelter for the night. No telling where we are and what's about. Transportation would be nice too." Shadow mentioned, looking at the group. Sabin nodded, and lifted Terra into his arms.

"Setzer? Mog? Come on. We've gotta get going." Sabin said, looking at the still form in his arms. Mog responded first with a soft "kupo…"

"We can't just leave her here. He gotta do something." Setzer said looking at the Falcon.

"There's nothing we can do here Setzer." Sabin said. "Let's see if we can find a town. Maybe then we can find enough supplies and money to repair it." Setzer looked up at him and nodded. He got up and went over to the group.

"I'll be back for you my friend." He said looking at the Falcon. They started walking what they guessed to be west. For the most part they walked on in silence. There was actually little to talk about. Terra occasionally muttered words, but they were usually too quiet for anyone to understand what she was saying.

"Hey shadow, do you feel it?" Sabin whispered. Shadow nodded.

"We're being followed. 45 feet back, two of them. Twice our size as well." They looked at each other and nodded. They stopped for a moment and Sabin placed Terra on the ground. "Interceptor, watch over her. " Shadow said.

"Kupo? What's going on?" He asked, but the two were already in action. Three shurikens sank into a wolf-like creature while Sabin's Aurabolt slammed into the second. Both creatures darted off into the darkness. "How did you know?" Mog asked.

"Something you gain from years of experience Mog." Sabin said, lifting Terra into his arms again. They walked for a while longer when they saw a fire ahead. They could see roughly four figures sitting around the flames. They were human, there was no doubt about that much. They picked up their pace, knowing there was safety in numbers. Shadow had pulled his famous vanishing act and had disappeared, though they knew he was close by. Suddenly Setzer stopped cold as the feeling of cold steel was placed against his neck.

"Sabin… we're not alone." Setzer said. Sabin turned around to see a figure holding a double-barrel shotgun against the back of Setzer's neck. But just as quickly a sword was placed at the strangers neck.

"Move and you're dead." Shadow said coldly.

"You're pretty good." The stranger said lowering his shotgun. "Name's Vincent. You've earned that much with your skill alone."

"Why the surprise attack?" Sabin asked looking at Vincent. 

"No offense, but one can't be too careful out here. You with Shinra?" Vincent asked.

"Who? Never heard of 'em. Kupo." Mog replied.

"I can tell you're sincere. Come. Meet the others." Vincent said. He slipped out of Shadow's grip and sword like a pro.

"You're pretty good yourself." Shadow said. "You coulda taken me out easily."

"Only if you're an enemy. Not to mention I woulda been outnumbered."

*                              *                              *

"Looks like we got company." Tifa said as she saw Vincent and a group of five approach the fire. She noticed Vincent took a particular liking to the one dressed entirely in black.

"Damn, I ain't sharin' my bear with 'em." Cid said as he lit a cigarette.

"Oh try to behave Cid. If Vincent is bringing them here they must be friendly." Tifa said looking at him coldly. They noticed the group suddenly stopped and one of them fell to his knees.

"What's with him?" Cloud wondered. 

*                              *                              *

"Setzer, what's wrong?" Vincent asked. Setzer pointed towards the group by the fire. They all looked as he pointed towards the Highwind.

"Oh you gotta be kidding me!" Sabin said as he saw the large airship.

"Talk about a low blow." Shadow added. Vincent looked confused.

"Setzer here owned an airship called the Falcon. It was the best. Now it's scrap." Sabin said. 

"We're not much better off." Vincent said calmly. "The Highwind is in bad shape and we can't even get it off the ground." They reached the group after getting Setzer walking again. Setzer and Cid instantly matched gazes, Sabin and Cloud looked at each other, both with their weapons ready, Barett moved closer to Tifa, and mog hid behind his friends. Terra started to stir as well. Vincent and Shadow looked at each other.

"I do believe I sense some tension in the group." Shadow stated matter-of-factly. Terra's eyes fluttered and Sabin helped her stand.

"You back with us now?" He asked her. She nodded and saw the group and their looks.

"What's going on here?" she asked. She moved over to Setzer and nudged him. "Lighten up Setzer."

"You tell him girly." Cid said with a mock grin.

"Oh shut up Cid." Tifa said with a look of disgust. Sabin couldn't help but chuckle. Cloud also popped a grin.

"That's better." Terra said. "So who are you?" Cloud stood up, more at ease now.

"I'm Cloud Strife. Allow me to introduce my team here. That's Cid, as you probably guessed." Cid growled. "Over here is Tifa, Barrett's next to her." Barett simply nodded and Tifa gave a wave. "And you've already met Vincent." Sabin took a step of forward.

"Guess it's my turn. I'm Sabin Figaro. Half king of Figaro Castle. This is Setzer, who owns a… slightly damaged airship." Setzer's face fell. "Uh, this is Terra, and Mog." They both smiled. "And this is Shadow and his dog Interceptor…. Uh, shadow?" They looked around, but once again, he had vanished. 

"Up here Sabin." Came a voice from the top of the Highwind. The group looked up as the ninja leaped down. "Setzer, I bet you could handle this. It's a mechanical problem." Setzer stood up and looked at the Highwind.

"It's not much different from the Falcon from what I can tell.  A little more advanced, though. A very nice craft."

"You like it?" Cid asked. "Built it myself. From the bottom up. It's my true love." 

"I thought that was himself." Tifa whispered, giggling. The others smiled, but Cid ignored her. 

"Let me give you a tour." Cid said, escorting Setzer inside. 

"Looks like those two have something in common after all." Sabin said.

"Hopefully they can fix it. I hate being stuck out here." Barett growled.

"Well let's go aboard. I'll give you a tour and we can get some refreshments." Tifa said.

"Sounds good to me." Terra agreed and they went aboard. 


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 8

Samus' ship appeared in space and she followed Ridley onto the closest planet. It was an inhabited planet. One unlike she had ever seen before. Completely untouched by the hands of space pirates, metroids or Mother Brain. It was like a paradise for her eyes.

"Ridley and Mother Brain will not defile this planet. No matter what it takes." Samus thought to herself. She had lost Ridley's trail and decided she would do a scout of the planet. As she flew across the planet, she noticed that there were huge towns of civilization. Some had great technology while others were small and quiet. She also noticed that there were great walls around some of the towns. Most likely for security reasons, though she saw nothing that would threaten them. She had completely forgotten why she was on this planet as the beauty dazzled her. That was until she saw a familiar being appear on her scanners. She veered hard to the left and zeroed in on Ridley.

"You won't get away this time." She said increasing her speed. Though as she got closer, she noticed Ridley was injured. His left wing seemed to be damaged. She flipped a switch on her console and a speaker on the outside of her ship crackled to life.

"Ridley. Give yourself up. You know you can't win. Let's just get this over with!" She said, opening the hatch in the roof.

"Samus?! Nooo! Mother Brain, help me." Ridley said as he dodged to the right. Samus set her ship to land a few kilometers ahead and climbed out the hatch and onto the roof. She leapt off the ship, her cannon firing off a frenzy of shots. Ridley managed to dodge most of them but a few struck him. He started to fall from the sky, but his right wing kept him in the air. Samus charged up her cannon and let loose the powered shot. It struck Ridley, but still he managed to retreat. Samus saw she was higher than originally thought. If she hit the ground at this speed, she would suffer great injury. She grabbed a Power Bomb, set it for 2-second fuse, and hurled it straight down. Then she curled up into a ball. The Power Bomb exploded in the air, and the force slowed her decent greatly. She landed softly on the ground, but to her disappointment, when she looked up, Ridley was nowhere in sight. She walked in the direction she last saw him heading, and approached a small town. When she entered, the residents ran for their homes. She heard one of them call out, "Run, It's Shinra!" She didn't know who Shinra was, but it wasn't important. She continued on and saw a group of children playing in the town square. She approached the children and they stopped playing to look at her. A few parents gasped as they saw Samus get close to the children, but couldn't get the nerve to run to them. She knelt on one knee and took off her helmet. 

"Hi there. Did you see a big red dragon fly by here?" She asked. Some of the kids shook their heads, but a few nodded.

"I did. He was real big and like. Like Bahamut, but not quite. Mommy knows what Bahamut looks like." Said a small boy.

"Great, do you know which way he went?" Samus asked, hope rising that she'd pick up the chase.

"Right here, Samus!" Said a sinister voice behind her. She also heard a woman scream.

"Jimmy! My boy!" the woman cried. Ridley was on top of a roof, a child around the age of seven in his grasp.

"Ridley you coward. Let the child go and take on a worthy opponent." She said while raising her cannon.

"That would not be wise Samus. He has no armor. I would hate to crush such a small human." He said giving the boy a small squeeze. The child cried out in pain, and Samus lowered her cannon.

"Alright Ridley, what do you want." She said, helpless. 

"Go back home Samus. Leave this place. That is if you want this child to live." Ridley said, an evil grin crossing his face. Samus lowered her head, thinking. If she left, Mother Brain would destroy this planet. If she stayed, an innocent life would be lost. What could she do?

"VANISH!" A female voice cried out the word from beyond the town. The child disappeared and Ridley jumped backwards, releasing his grasp.

"What? Where did he go?" Ridley cried out.

"Interceptor, get the child!" Came a male voice. "Sabin, make him hurt!"

"AURA BOLT!" A blast of pure white light blasted Ridley off the building and he landed hard on the ground. Everything happened so fast, Samus couldn't even react. A team of ten people were rushing the town. There were two females, and eight males. A dog grabbed an invisible form, which materialized into the child, and leapt to the side of the mother. The dog released the child and returned to its owner, a ninja. The team reached the town, and Samus took up a position on the other side. Ridley got back to his feet, took one look around, and bolted off into the sky.

"This isn't my day!" They heard him say as he flew off. Samus looked at the group. Five of them seemed to prepare for battle when they saw her.

"What do you think Barett? Shinra doesn't usually help people. Not to mention that suit is way to advanced for them." One with a large sword said.

"I don't think she's part of Shinra, Cloud. For one thing, she's female. They don't use female troops. Especially alone." Said the man with a gun implanted on his arm. Samus took a step forward.

"I don't know anything about Shinra or this place. But I do offer my thanks in fending off Ridley. I'm glad the child is okay." She said, moving over to the mother and child. They backed off, and Cloud stepped between Samus and the mother.

"Shinra or not, what's with the armor? And why are you here?" Cloud asked.

"My name is Samus Aran. I'm an intergalactic bounty hunter. Ridley is a creature that works for Mother Brain. I believe she is on this planet, and if I'm right, you could all be in very grave danger." She said, calmly. Cloud stood there for a minute, the words only half making sense. Then Cid stepped forward.

"Intergalactic? As in outer space? From another world?" His eyes had a glimmer of hope, and curiosity.

"As a matter of fact, yes. My ship isn't far from here." She said. The look on Cid's face made her smile.

"So you're an alien?" Barett asked.

"Do I look alien to you?" She said, flipping her golden hair around her shoulders. "If anything you're gun attachment is about 2000 years out of date. Not to mention your manners." Samus retorted.

"She's got a mouth on her, and a big gun to match. I think I like her." Barett said with a grin. Tifa and Sabin managed a chuckle and everyone seemed to relax a little. The entire group went into a tavern and sat around a large table. 

"Okay so I'm guessing you're not evil. So tell us more about Ridley. Why did he want to harm that child?" Tifa asked.

"To get what he wants. Ridley, Mother Brain and myself come from a different galaxy. I'm not sure how we got here, actually. I followed him into a black hole, and when I regained consciousness I was orbiting this planet. Where I come from, Ridley is the leader of a group of space pirates. Though I don't believe there are any pirates here, thankfully." Samus explained.

"Okay back up a moment here. Why should we fear a brain?" What could it possibly do?" Terra spoke up. 

"She's not just a brain. She's a creature that has incredible intellectual powers. She can somewhat influence creatures with a lesser intelligence." Samus clarified.

"You'd better be careful Cid. She might control you." Tifa said with a giggle. Cid growled and the others laughed.

"Though I tend to agree, she almost irradicated multiple species. She took control of creatures called metroids. They had the ability to absorb the very essence of life energy from any living thing. I've already defeated her twice, but thanks to Ridley, she's been reincarnated twice as well. I long for this war to be over." She said sadly. 

"Life energy absorption? Sounds like these creatures are exactly like Shinra. The evil bastards." Barett said with a growl. 

"Oh don't get me wrong. The metroids weren't evil. They just couldn't help but being controlled. And the energy absorbing could be reversed to help civilization. They could create their own energy."

"They 'weren't' evil?" Sabin asked. Samus' head lowered and a tear rolled down her cheek.

"That's right… I had found a hatchling, the last metroid actually, that took me as its seragate mother. It was beyond Mother Brain's corruption. A true form of metroid. But when it aided me in my last battle, Mother Brain killed the poor creature." Her voice trailed off, and the room went quiet.

"That's so sad." Terra finally said. "I lost my father to an equally evil person."

"I've lost friends and loved ones." Sabin said.

"Those bastards killed my babies!" Cid cried. Tifa pointed out that he meant his airplane and a rocket that was supposed to be launched into space.

"Shinra killed my best friends and fellow fighters." Barett said.

"Sounds like we've all lost something important to us. Usually from what we were fighting against." Shadow said, petting interceptor.

"What have you lost, Shadow?" Cloud asked.

"I'd rather not discuss it." Shadow said. Cloud was about to ask again, but the warning look Sabin shot him was enough to back down.

"Casualties of war I suppose." Mog said. 

"Excuse me folks," Said a man from behind the bar counter. "We're closing up for the night."

"It is getting late. We should find a place to stay. Samus, do you have a sleeping quarter in your space ship?" Tifa asked.

"No, I usually don't sleep that much. Fighting against Mother Brain doesn't really afford me that luxury." Samus replied.

"There's an Inn across the road. They should be able to help you folks out." Offered the bartender.

"Thanks!" Sabin said. "Let's head over there and see if they can put us up." The group of now eleven went over to the Inn and walked up to the counter. A short chubby man looked at the group and adjusted his large glasses.

"Howdy folks. Looking for a few rooms?" He asked.

"As a matter of fact, yes. We'll need, hmm. Four rooms." Cloud said, stepping forward.

"Four rooms eh? Well let's see what I've got available." He opened a large book and flipped through a few pages. "Here we go. I don't have much left. For those rooms, it'll cost 1800 gil."

"1800 Gil! You thief! I don't have that kind of cash!" Barett yelled.

"Please sir, you'll anger the other patrons." The man said.

"Will this do?" Sabin said, pulling his hand out of his pocket. In it was a handful of gold coins.

"GOOD GOD SON! THIS IS PURE GOLD! Where on earth did you get it?" He said looking over the coins.

"Uh, I just had it on me." He said, remembering they weren't in their world anymore. After handing over a couple coins, what would have been a mere 25 gold in Narshe, the inn keeper handed over four keys, and pointed out where their rooms were.

"The girls get their own room!" Tifa said looking at the men.

"Why Tifa, you wouldn't suspect us of anything would you?" Sabin said, grinning.

"I don't know about you Sabin, but there's a few faces in there that I don't trust." She retorted. Samus and a few of the guys blushed. They separated into their rooms and set in for the night. 


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 9

                "Mother Brain! We have trouble!" Ridley cried as he flew into a dark cave. However he stopped short when he saw the Brain in her glass chamber, quietly communicating with a metroid.

                "It's not possible. Samus destroyed them all. Have we finally perfected the recreation process?" Ridley asked moving closer. Mother Brain's eyes flew open and the metroid latched on to Ridley.

                "NEVER SPEAK HER NAME IN MY PRESENCE IS THAT UNDERSTOOD?" Mother Brain roared. The metroid removed itself from the weakened Ridley and floated over to the glass chamber.

                "Of course master. Forgive me." Ridley said.

                "We haven't completed the process, but this one is amazingly close. Now what small little problem could we possibly have that would need such dire attention." Mother Brain asked, getting impatient with Ridley. Ridley paused for a moment. The Brain was furious with the mere mention of Samus' name. How would she react to her presence on this planet?

                "Uh, a group of heroes on this planet attacked me and they know about your plans. They are quite strong and use strange powers." Ridley said, avoiding the obvious point.

                "Oh pooh on them. I'm not afraid of a bunch of measly humans. Besides, as long as Samus isn't here, then there's nothing they could do to harm me or the metroids." She said quite matter-of-factly. 

                "She's here." He muttered. He started to back away from Mother Brain.

                "Did you say something Ridley? Speak up." The Brain ordered.

                "She's here master. I don't know how, but she's here." Ridley asked.

                "Who's here? Who are you talking about?" Mother Brain asked.

                "Samus." Ridley said. He flew behind a large boulder, but there was no big explosion, no fireballs. Nothing.

                "Samus? Here. Well isn't that just ducky. I was so hoping that she wouldn't interfere with my plans, but I suppose it's fate that we meet up again." 

                "You're not mad Mother Brain?" Ridley asked looking out from behind the rock.

                "Of course I'm not mad. Come to me Ridley." The Brain said. Ridley walked over to her chamber. "I'M FURIOUS!!!!" She screamed. She vaporized Ridley with one large blast. "Oh now look what you've gone and done. Must I resurrect you again?" She revived Ridley and she closed her eyes, deep in thought.

                "This poses significant problems. How many are there?" The Brain asked.

                "I counted eleven of them. Twelve, if you count the mutt. They were all human except for one. Not overly sure what it was." Ridley explained.

                "Tell me about these powers of theirs." The Brain queried.   
                "Even I do not understand them. They seemed to be able to speak words and things would happen. One of them spoke 'vanish' and a hostage I had disappeared in my very hands. But he was still there and the dog picked him up and carried him away. Very confusing." He said.

                "It's called magic you ignoramus." Came a voice from the entrance. There stood a tall man with a large sword and a long black cloak.

                "Who the hell are you, barging in on my domain?" Mother Brain roared.

                "My name is Sepiroth. As for barging in on you're domain, it sounds like we have a similar interest. I've been listening to your conversation and it sounds like the ones using magic are undoubtedly Cloud and his little groupie. Sounds like they found some friends though." Sepiroth said.

                "You have a point I hope." Brain said, getting impatient.

                "I'm, what you would call, the evil of this world. As we speak I have a giant meteor on it's way to vaporize this pathetic planet. However Cloud has this crazy notion of stopping me. He's become quite the pain."

                "Don't like the planet so have it vaporized. I like your style Sep. Maybe we can work something out after all." She said as her laughter echoed into the darkness.

*                              *                              *

                After what seemed like forever, Mega Man finally awoke. Back to his normal self, thankfully. He looked around and almost got shocked out of his wits. Tron, Tiesel, Roll and Bass were talking calmly. They weren't fighting, they weren't arguing, but actually talking?

                "I never thought I'd see the day…" Mega man said as he looked dumbfounded at the group. 

                "Mega Man! You're awake! Thank goodness." Roll said going over and hugging him.

                "Roll go easy on me. You're gonna crack my armor and squash me!" He said. Tron stood up.

                "It's good to see you're okay. You had us worried." She said. Mega man looked confused.

                "You two never cease to amaze me. First you wanna kill me, then you want to help me, then try to… well you know what I'm saying."

                "We're not completely heartless after all." Tiesel said. "Tron proved that when we found out she had a crush on…" Tiesel was cut off and doubled over as Tron gave him a hard elbow to his midsection.

                "SHUT UP TIESEL!" Tron said, blushing. Mega man got a confused look on his face. Roll had a look on her face that would get a bear to flee, but no one noticed it. Mega man sat with the others.

                "So how come you were following us?" Roll asked Tron. She looked up in surprise at the question, but calmly answered.

                "Well we were trying to find a town to sell that huge refractor we got after you're last mission. After all our boat was in bad shape and it was all we had left. Now…" she said looking at what remained of their craft. It was easy to figure out it was no longer sea worthy.

                "Speaking of the refractor, where is it?" Tiesel asked as he realized it was no longer hanging from the back of the boat. He got up and started looking around.

                "First one to find it gets to keep it!" Bass said as he bounded up and disappeared into the brush.

                "Hey we had it first! Get back here you creep!" Tron screamed, running after him.

                "They seem to get along real well." Roll said while chuckling. She looked at Mega Man. "You sure you're okay?"

                "I'm fine. Well shall we search out that refractor? It'll give us something to do." He said, lifting himself up.

                "I suppose it wouldn't hurt to…" she never finished as Babu came flying out of the forest at high speed, Tiesel, Tron and Bass close behind.

                "We've gotta get outta here. The big refractor cracked and there's some kind of energy reaction. It's gonna blow and probably take this island with it." Tiesel said as he ran to his boat.

                "It's gonna what?!" Roll said, jumping up. "Everyone to the flyer. I just hope we can lift off with all of us on board." No one hesitated, and they all ran towards Mega Man's small craft. Roll started to climb the ladder, but Bass and Mega man simply jumped to the tree tops then onto the craft.

                "It's time to leave Roll." Mega man said as he saw a flash of light to the south. There was a large crackle, like fire racing through an acre of dried tinder. Then there was a huge flash and an earth-shattering explosion. They all looked to the south and saw bright white light in a sphere ever expanding towards them.

                "It's too late! We're not gonna make it!" Tron said as the aircraft started to lift off. But the weight proved to be too much and the craft couldn't get more then a few feet off the ground.

                "We're too heavy. We're finished!" Tiesel said as he covered his head and knelt down. The light over took them and everyone felt searing heat tear through their bodies. It was like being in the center of the sun, yet somehow surviving. When just as quickly as the light had overtaken them, it receded and disappeared into a small puff of smoke. The craft then lifted off and headed into open sea.

                "That explosion must have energized our ship or something because we're flying quite easily now. Is everyone alright?" Roll said into the loudspeaker. Bass appeared in the front window as he had been on the upper deck. Roll jumped back and screamed, but after she realized who it was, she glared at him.

                "I'm fine, thanks for asking sweet cakes." Bass said with a mock grin. He stayed on the top deck and enjoyed the sunlight. Tiesel came up the ladder behind her.

                "How did we ever survive that? I thought we were barbecued for sure." He said. Roll looked at him.

                "I can't explain it myself. How's Tron and Babu?" she asked. Tiesel looked up at her.

                "Well Babu is fine, but I haven't seen Tron. Nor Mega Man for the matter."  He replied.

                "Mega Man?" She said, her face going pale. She grabbed the microphone and the speakers on the ship crackled to life. "Mega Man, report to the command deck immidiately." She waited for a few moments, then repeated herself. Bass opened the top hatch and poked his head inside.

                "Hey Roll, you might wanna see this." He said, his face somber and quiet. He was missing his attitude and meanness. Totally not like Bass at all. She became even more worried. She rushed up the ladder to the top deck. When she got there, Bass pointed to a spot on the deck. There, unmistakable to the naked eye, were two foot marks burned into the deck. She looked at Bass and he nodded.

                "He was standing right there just before that light hit us. I thought I heard something but my instincts told me it was my own voice crying out from that heat." Bass said.

                "Mega Man was… incinerated?" she said, choking on the words. Babu came racing from around the side of the ship, babbling like crazy.

                "What do you want Babu? This isn't the time!" Tiesel said looking at Roll and the burn marks. "Wait a minute. Where's Tron?!" The group raced down two levels and into Roll's room. There, laying on the ground, was a smashed picture of Mega Man and two more burn marks. No doubt in their mind that they matched Tron's shoe size perfectly.

                "Not Tron too." Roll cried, picking up the picture frame. She looked at Mega Man standing there, giving her the thumbs up to let her know everything was all right. She started to sob uncontrollably as she fell to her knees. Tiesel came in the room and saw the scene.

                "Tron… where are you! Troooonnnnnnn!" His voice echoed off into the open air as the aircraft floated off to nowhere inparticular.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 10

                It took a few moments for Mega Man to realize he wasn't dead. The searing heat was gone, in fact the air seemed cool and moist. A little too moist for that matter. He realized he was floating face down in water. He tried to sit up, but his body was in agony. It finally obeyed and he lifted himself up to hear a few people cry out.

                "Hey he's moving. I think he's still alive. Check the other one." Came a male voice. He felt two pairs of hands on his arms as they helped him out of the water. His eyes fluttered open, but his vision was still blurry.

                "What happened?" He finally managed to choke out. His vision was slowly starting to clear and he could see a small group of people standing around him.

                "You're lucky I couldn't sleep and went for a walk." Said one of the young men.

"You sure had us worried. You washed up on shore a little while ago. We didn't think you were alive. How did you and your friend end up in the ocean?" One woman asked.

                "Friend?" Mega man asked. He looked over and saw Tron laying on the sand, breathing, but barely. "Tron?! Are you okay?" He asked trying to go over to her. But his body wouldn't allow it. For the meantime, he was going to have to rest.

                "Easy there fellah. No need to rush. She seems to be fine too. Let's get you over to our village. Maybe after some rest, you'll be able to remember things more clearly." A couple of the stronger men moved towards him, but Mega man held out his hand.

                "I should be okay in a minute. Help her instead." He said motioning towards Tron. He looked down at his energy gauge. It was low, but it had been far lower in his battles. After a few brief moments, he found he could stand. They made a makeshift stretcher and placed Tron on it. The group made their way to a small, quaint village. A few of the residents watched as they made their way to what Mega man guessed was their doctor. They entered and an elderly man with graying hair came up to them.

                "Who's this, Chuck?" The doctor asked.

                "We found him on the shore. His friend over there might need some medical assistance. She seems to be unconscious." He said, motioning to the girl on the stretcher.

                "Bring her in here." He said, walking to the back. They placed her on a table and the doctor brought out a small blade. He placed it over Tron and waved it back and forth slowly. He did this twice more before putting the blade down.

                "This is most confusing. I can't seem to scan her at all." The doctor said.

                "With a knife? Of course not. Why don't you hook her up to a real scanner." Mega man said.

                "Don't be silly boy. My sense materia has been raised to its maximum power level. I should be able to sense anything." The doctor said distraught.

                "Sense materia? What's that?" he asked confused.

                "I thought sense materia was pretty common these days. Far more than attack materia since Shinra usually buys most of that off the market." He sat in an old chair and tilted back.

                "I wonder if Roll's still in communications range." He wondered. He tapped his helmet and heard his speakers kick in.

                "Roll can you hear me? Are you there?" he said. The doctor looked at him oddly, then decided it must be some new communications on the market.

                "Come in Roll. Are you okay? Can you hear me?" Mega man tried. Finally he heard some rustling around and a female voice could be heard.

                "Hello?" it said. Mega man could tell the person he was talking to must have been in a deep sleep.

                "Roll wake up. It's Mega man. Where are you? Are you okay?" He said, hope raising inside him. But it was crushed when he realized it wasn't Roll's voice coming back to him.

                "Roll? Wha? Who is this? Do you know what time it is?" Came the voice.

                "I'm sorry. I'm looking for a friend of mine. My name is Mega Man." He said.

                "Mega man? Wait a minute, how did you tap into this frequency? This is a sealed frequency." The voice said, now clearly awake and alert.

                "This is the frequency I always use with Roll. I'm sorry I disturbed you." He said turning off his communicator. He heard a moan and turned to see Tron stir.

                "Tron are you okay?" he said going up to her.

                "Huh? Mega Man? Is that you? What happened?" She said, opening her eyes. "Where am I?"

                "At a medical center. I don't remember much myself. After that explosion from the refractor, I woke up on a beach and these people helped us here." He moved back so that a few of the villagers could be seen.

                "Where's Tiesel? And the others?" She asked.

                "I don't know. I tried contacting Roll, but I got somebody else and I think they were mad that I was using my own frequency." He said. After the doctor gave them the okay that they seemed healthy enough to go on, they left the small clinic and into the open air. It was late at night.

                "All I remember is that heat. Such intense heat, and then nothing. I blacked out I guess." Tron said as they sat on a bench near a small fire.

                "Do you think the others are okay?" Mega man asked, feeling truly worried for the first time. After all he had felt that heat too. Being outside the ship, he had seen the grass burnt to dust as fast as the light moved. And when the heat over took him, he could feel his insides burning. He couldn't believe he was still alive. But Tron had been deep inside the ship. How was it that these two made it here? Surely Bass would have been with him since he had been beside him. Or had the ship exploded and sank. Possibly taking everyone else with it? His thoughts were broken as he felt Tron's head on his shoulder.

                "What if we never see them again Mega man?" She asked.

                "I… I wish I could say that we will." He said watching the fire. "But I just don't know if it's true." He could feel her softly crying on his shoulder. But all too soon, her crying stopped and her breathing had slowed slightly. He realized she had fallen asleep on his shoulder. He looked around, then lifted her into his arms. He carried her over to the doctor's office and asked if there was a place they could spend the night. He offered his two medical beds and Mega man graciously accepted, laying Tron on one of them. He took the other and waited for darkness to overtake him. It wasn't long before he fell into the black pit known as sleep.

*                              *                              *

                "What's wrong Samus?" Tifa said, the sleep heavy in her voice. She had been startled awake when Samus started yelling into thin air. Samus put her helmet back on the nightstand and looked at her.

                "Sorry I woke you Tifa. Someone had tapped into my communications frequency. My first instinct was Mother Brain or something. But this was a guy and his voice was polite." She lay back on the bed. Tifa's eyes adjusted to the darkness and got her first real look at Samus. She was a beautiful woman, though you would never know it when she wears her armor. Her body was slender and very muscular. She had long blonde hair that fell to the middle of her back. Tifa looked her over and then grinned. She still had the biggest chest of anyone she knew. She laid back and stared at the ceiling, then rolled over trying to get comfortable. One room over, Terra was tossing in her sleep. She was having an evil nightmare. She saw her father, Maduin, caught in one of Kefka's cylinders. He was reaching out for her, but she couldn't help him. She was under Kefka's control as she wore the slave crown. She heard Kefka's laughter as he ordered her to do the impossible. But under the control of the slave crown, she had no choice. She raised her hands, directed them at her father and then… she screamed. Less than a second later, a white blast of aura blew the door clean off it's hinges as Sabin ran into the room.

                "Terra are you okay?" he said, running to her bedside. Her face was covered in sweat, and she was breathing heavy. She looked at Sabin and fell into his arms.

                "It was Kefka. He had my father and he forced me to destroy him." She said, crying on his shoulder. Shadow and Vincent entered the room, their weapons drawn.

                "Is everything alright in here?" Vincent asked. Sabin nodded and motioned them to leave. They nodded and disappeared, like they were both so famous for. They motioned to the others that it was okay, and everyone returned to their rooms.

                "It's okay Terra. Kefka is dead. You were there, you saw us defeat him." Sabin said slowly as he held her close.

                "It was so real though. I saw his face, I heard his laughter, I saw my magic…" She said between sobs. After a few moments, she started to calm down, wiping the tears from her eyes.

                "You gonna be okay now?" Sabin asked. She looked up at him, gave a half smile and nodded.

                "Thanks Sabin. I feel a lot better now. But how come you were able to get here so fast? I mean you even beat Shadow here by a good minute and a half." She asked looking up at him. Sabin thanked the darkness or she would have clearly seen him blushing.

                "Well you see, Setzer, Cid, Cloud and I were playing poker and I sort of lost a heavy round. I didn't have enough chips for the round, so we made a side bet." He said, stumbling over his words.

                "What kind of bet?" she asked. She noticed that Sabin was stalling for a moment.

                "Well whoever lost the hand, well, he'd have to…" the nervousness in his voice was evident.

                "You can tell me anything Sabin." She said calmly. Though nothing could have prepared her for what happened next. She felt the young king's lips on hers. It startled her, yet she didn't seem to mind. At first anyway. Almost as if a reaction, she felt her hand raise up and slap him across the face. She didn't know why she did it. She actually enjoyed the kiss. But Sabin was flat on his backside, with a shocked expression on his face.

                "You're right, I shouldn't have done that. I'll go now." He said, turning to leave.

                "Sabin wait!" She called as he left the room. But he had already gone.  She brought her legs in close to her as she held herself. What possessed her to react in such a way? Although she never truly understood this kind of love yet. Maybe she was just unprepared for it. Though only time would tell.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 11

                Blasts of energy and loud, foul language could be heard from the cave where Mother Brain was hiding. Ridley picked himself off the ground and prepared to re-enter the cave when another energy blast knocked him even further from the cave.

                "HOW DARE YOU!" Mother brain roared as she fired an energy beam at Sepiroth. He retaliated with an Ice 2 spell, but it only seemed to piss of the brain more.

                "Listen you dried up old prune. I don't take orders from anyone, especially when they're not of this planet. It doesn't belong to you." Sepiroth called back.

                "Dried up… Oh you will pay for that." She yelled as she fired another beam at him.

                "Mother Brain please!" Ridley said as he finally managed to re-enter the cave. If you keep this up you'll put Samus out of a job!"

                "Oh shut up!" Mother Brain and Sepiroth cried in unison. His flare spell and her energy eye beam were more than enough to annihilate Ridley once again. Both turned from the other in disgust.

                "This is pointless." Sepiroth finally said. "It appears that neither of us are willing to work together, yet we both have the same goals." The Brain nodded, as best she could and looked at him.

                "So what do you propose?" She asked. Sepiroth sat on a large stone and lowered his head.

                "You come up with a plan, as will I. Then we shall compare ideas, make a joint plan and rid ourselves of these pitiful so-called heroes." He said. The Brain agreed and Sepiroth left the cave, but not before casting Life 2 on Ridley.

                "You know you really should go easy on him. One of these times he might not come back." Sepiroth said as he left.

                "Bah!" The brain retorted, closing her eyes and trying to form a plan.

*                              *                              *

                Mega man awoke and looked around. Tron wasn't in her bed, so he headed outside. She was looking at the sun, and other sights around her. He walked up beside her and she smiled.

                "Good morning Mega man. I've found out something very odd." She said. He looked at her and raised an eyebrow. "You see this isn't an island at all. It's a continent. As in a huge land mass. Do you know what that means?" After he shook her head, she continued. "Wherever we are now, isn't anywhere from where we belong. Mega man, we're on a different planet!"

                "What!? That's impossible. How did we get to another planet?" he asked in disbelief. She shrugged.

                "I don't know myself. It must have happened when we got caught in the explosion. Maybe it opened a gateway or warp or something." She said softly. Mega man noticed that one of the villagers had pointed over to them. He was talking to someone who was obviously not from this village. He was wealthy. The stranger walked over to them and smiled.

                "Hi there, I'm recruiting for Shinra. Would you care to tell me where you got such odd armor?" He asked. Mega man looked at his armor. He hardly thought it odd.

                "I don't know. I've always had it I guess." He said. "And I'm not looking to join Shinra, whatever it is. I'm just trying to find a way to my friends."

                "Hmm. Seen someone who looked kinda like you. But different you know what I'm saying? They were staying over in Nibelheim. It's not overly far from here." He said. "I can give you a lift there if you want. Maybe when you meet you're friends you'll reconsider about Shinra." Mega man looked at Roll and she nodded. Hopefully it was Tiesel or Bass, maybe even Roll. They left the town, and entered a small helicopter. It lifted off and flew over some mountains. They could see a town approaching in the distance.

                "That's Nibelheim there in the distance, I'll set down a little ways away. They might not give me the warmest of greetings." He said with a chuckle.

                "I wonder why that is." Tron whispered to Mega man. She had noticed the armaments on the chopper and figured this must be an army that tried to control people. Little did she know just how right she was. They landed and Mega man and Tron started to head for the city. When they entered, a few people pointed at Mega man, but for the most part ignored Tron. Mega man walked up to one of the town's folk.

                "Have you seen anyone sort of like me?" He asked. The man nodded.

                "Yeah, I seen someone like you. Saved Mary's child they did. Her and a bunch of her friends anyway. They're staying over at the Inn." He said, pointing to one of the buildings.

                "Thank you very much." Mega man said, heading to the Inn. He activated his comm. system again and called out for Roll and the others. Instead he got the female voice again.

                "You again? I thought I told you not to use this frequency." She said.

                "I'm sorry, but I'm trying to find my friends. I was told one of them might be nearby so I tried contacting them again." He said. They entered the Inn, and Mega man not only heard her through the comm. system but from down the hall. He headed down that way, and knocked on one of the doors. He heard footsteps come towards them and a woman opened the door. Mega man had to catch his jaw from dropping. A beautiful woman was standing before him, wearing only her nightgown.

                "Can I help you?" she asked. Mega man shook his head.

                "Sorry, I'm looking for my friends." He said. The girl looked him over.

                "Hmm. Hey Samus, do you know this guy? He's got some crazy armor and a cannon like you." The girl called.

                "Just a second Tifa." He heard a voice call back. Samus came up to him, leaving her helmet off, but otherwise in her full armor.

                "No I don't recognize him, and I doubt he's a bounty hunter. What's your name?" she asked.

                "It's Mega man. And I see where the guy thought we looked a like." He said.

                "Mega man? You're the guy using my frequency!" She said.

                "It's not yours, it's the one Roll and I have always used. But I suppose that doesn't matter since we're no longer on our own planet." He said.

                "Own planet? What do you mean?" Tifa asked. Mega man told them the story about the refractor exploding and how they woke up here.

                "Just like Terra and her group, sort of. It's like we've all been called here." Samus said. "But for what reason?"

                "Heroes from different worlds and planets are summoned here? Surely Sepiroth couldn't pose that great a threat. Could he?" Tifa said to no one inparticular.

*                              *                              *

                "Suck them all dry!" Ridley ordered to the two Metroids that the Brain had created. The metroids were absorbing the life force of people from one of the town's. The Brain had become weakened in this new world and needed energy to sustain herself, so she had sent Ridley and the two nearly perfect metroids to gather energy for her. They had already dealt with over half the town, some already turned to dust, the others just hanging on to the thread of life. After he felt the Metroids could absorb no more for now, Ridley called them back and they returned to the cave. Mother brain was resting to conserve her energy and Sepiroth was in a back corner enforcing his hold over the meteor spell. Upon his arrival, Mother Brain looked up at him.

                "You were successful?" She asked. He nodded and the metroids latched onto pods surrounding the Brain's chamber, pumping energy into her. Almost instantly she seemed more alive and fully recharged.

                "Excellent!" She said, brimming with energy. "Now what's your report on those blasted heroes?" She inquired. Ridley sat on a rock and looked at her with concern.

                "Well it wasn't easy being in the vicinity of them, but I bring even more bad news. During the night, two more seemed to join their team. Though only one of them seemed to be an actual warrior. He was clad in armor much different than Samus, but in ways similar. If this keeps up we will soon be so greatly outnumbered, we won't have a chance to succeed." He replied. She laughed hard and loud. Even Sepiroth, who never smiled, had a grin on his face.

                "No matter how many pathetic fools they gather together, they can not withstand our evil." She said. Sepiroth stood and walked towards them.

                "Agreed, but we should now put our plan into action. They will not be expecting such tactics and therefore will be easy prey." He stated. All three nodded and Ridley and Sepiroth left the cave to start their evil work. However after they left, mother brain became concerned. It wasn't that Samus had beaten her before, but there were now twelve heroes she had to worry about. Would the two of them be enough? She closed her eyes and started pondering things.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 12

                The heroes sat around a large table within the Inn. Sabin was avoiding Terra's eyes for reasons only known to them. They discussed their battles, their foes and what brought them to this place.

                "You mean Magic doesn't exist here?" Setzer asked. Tifa shook her head.

                "Not in the sense you're thinking of. You see magic focuses itself in concentrated areas and becomes materia. We require this materia to cast magic, while you seem to have natural abilities." Terra told them about how Kefka basically became magic itself and with his destruction, so did magic vanish. Only some hidden latent powers kept them with some very minor spells. Cloud passed a lightning materia to Terra and when she touched it, her head shot back. The group jumped up, not sure what to do. After a moment she laid the materia on the table.

                "Terra are you okay?" Sabin asked by her side. She blinked a few times then nodded.

                "I could feel the magical energy inside it. It felt so wonderful to be filled with that essence once more." She said. Barrett and the others looked confused so she explained how she used to be half esper.

                "Esper? What is an esper?" Cid asked. She told them of the espers and their summoning magic and how Kefka enslaved them.

                "Summons? We have summon materia here. Ramuh, Shiva, Ifrit, Leviathan, Bahamut. We have yet to aquire others." Cloud told them. He placed some red materia on the table. Terra reached out and took Ramuh's summon materia. Her eyes closed and she seemed to be concentrating hard. Deep within the reccesses of her mind, an old gray figure appeared to her.

                "How good it is to see you again child." Ramuh said to her. She looked at the departed Esper.

                "How is it you've come to exist on this world again? I thought espers had forever vanished from the mortal plane." She said. The others heard her words, but not those of Ramuh.

                "That is not important as of late. You have been summoned here on a mission of most importance. Three great evils are gathering on this planet and the natives will not be enough to withstand their assault. Only you're combined might will be able to free this planet from evil." He said. She nodded and the image started to fade.

                "Please don't leave me Ramuh. Tell me about my father. Does he live? How are the others?" she pleaded, but he was already beyond her words. She opened her eyes to see the others watching her. She blushed and told them about her encounter with Ramuh. Sabin nodded, but the others took a while to digest the information.

                "Three evils? He spoke of three? But there are only two that we are even now aware of." Samus said. "Sepiroth and Mother Brain. Ridley is also here, but he can't possibly be the third evil. There must be something more." The others nodded. They decided it was time for a break. They broke up and went their own directions, agreeing to meet again later. Sabin returned to his room, planning to meditate. He had set himself up and was just getting to his zone when he heard a soft knock on the door. He opened his eyes, and saw Terra looking at him. He bit his lip and motioned for her to come in.

                "Um, Sabin, can I talk to you for a minute?" She asked. He was ready for a lecture, but not for this.

                "Sure Terra. What's up?" He asked, trying to remain calm. She walked a few steps into the room and lowered her gaze.

                "I want to apologize." She said. Sabin was about to interrupt but she held up her hand. "No, please. Let me finish. I don't know why I slapped you. It was sort of a reaction to the unexpected. It's not that I don't like you. I just haven't really experienced that kind of love before." She said. Her voice slightly trailed off. Sabin looked up at her and stood up. He walked over to her and put his hands on her shoulders. She put her arms around him almost as if begging to be held close by something of comfort. He obliged and hugged her softly, yet firmly. After a moment, she let herself slide away from him and she looked into his deep blue eyes.

                "I'm afraid I too must apologize Terra. I never should have kissed you without your permission." He said softly. He looked to her for forgiveness, but instead of seeing that in her eyes, he was suddenly met with her lips on his. It was a soft kiss. One neither had been expecting. Yet Terra found comfort and warmth in the way Sabin held her in his arms as they kissed. After a moment the broke apart, and both blushed furiously. Neither said anything right away, but finally their shy silence was broken when they heard Cid coming down the hall.

                "I'm telling you Setzer, we can fix that baby for you no problem!" Cid said as they came closer. Both Sabin and Terra got surprised looks on their faces. Sabin quickly entered his meditation position and Terra hid behind the door. The two airship owners walked by without much more than a glance at Sabin. Setzer motioned them to move on, not wanting to disturb Sabin's meditation. After they continued on, Terra came out of hiding, and was about to leave when she turned right into Shadow. She let out a quick scream of surprise then realized who she had just bumped into.

                "Shadow! You scared my out of a year's growth!" She said, gasping for air.

                "Sorry Terra. Though if I may ask, why were you in this room?" he said, a hint of knowing in his voice. Terra turned a deep crimson, and stammering, made her way back to her room. Though no one could tell, a glimmer of respect was in his eyes, and a smile on his face. In his mind he thought, "It's good to see love still live around me. Even though I shall never be able to love another." He continued on past Sabin's room and out of sight. Sabin was also a deep red as Shadow walked off, but soon his face returned to normal and he began his meditation.

*                              *                              *

                "What in the hell did you do to this thing?" Cid asked Setzer as they looked over the remains of the Falcon. 

                "It wasn't me. A blast of lighting went straight up the hull and basically split my poor baby in half." Setzer replied, sorting through the rubble. There was hardly much left of his ship. Yet he was determined to rebuild the craft that Daryl had left him. He had done it once, he'd do it again. Though it wasn't in near this bad a shape when he found it the first time. 

                "I'll level with you Setzer. I don't know if we can repair her. Though we're gonna give it our all." He said. Setzer looked at him and nodded.

                "What more could I ask for? Though no matter how long it takes, I will repair her." Setzer said. The two went to work on restoring the totalled craft.

*                              *                              *

                Samus, Mega man, Tron and Tifa had gone off to scout out the town. Mega man felt odd being amongst three women, but he didn't mind that much. They walked almost completely in silence, except for the odd tidbit of conversation. They were just outside of town, when Samus suddenly assumed a battle pose.

                "What is it Samus?" Tifa asked.

                "Something's coming. My suit has a special ability to power up the weapons systems when a threat is nearby." She replied, loading a missile into her cannon. The others also got ready, Tron holding back since she had no direct weapons of her own. Though nothing seemed to appear on the horizon, or jump at them from behind a rock. The group started to relax a bit when a fireball appeared out of nowhere. Tifa wasn't even thinking as she threw up a reflect wall and deflected the fireball off into space.

                "Where'd that come from?" Tron said half in disbelief. Another fireball was reflected as Tifa's reflect spell held.

                "Come out and fight you coward!" Samus yelled. Though the only response she got was hollow laughter, seeming to come from all around them. They started to retreat towards the town. Once back within its walls, they made their way back to the Inn, hoping the others would be there soon. They needed to discuss this new threat. 


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 13

                After a few hours, the group reassembled at the Inn. When Samus told the others of their encounter, all seemed without any possible answer.

                "It doesn't make sense. The magic would have required a source. A point of origin to be cast from." Cloud said.

                "I agree," Terra confirmed. "Though from what they tell us, there was none." Tifa nodded her confirmation.

                "I can't sense anything either." Barrett said, removing the materia from his gun attachment. "Whatever it was, it's either gone, or beyond the sense materia's ability." Terra got up to get some tea for herself. As she returned to the table, however, she dropped the cup and it shattered on the ground.

                "Terra!" Sabin cried. "Are you alright?" He stood up to help her, but something held him back. There was no life in her eyes. She stared straight forward, not blinking in the least. Then she slowly raised her hands and started to cast a spell.

                "Everyone move! That's ultima she's casting!" Tifa cried, running from the building. Sabin and Shadow took more direct action. They lunged at her, hoping to disrupt the spell. They hit her both high and low, taking her to the ground. Terra cried out when they hit her, the wind knocked from her lungs as she went down. When they were sure the spell had been cancelled, they slowly looked her over. Through the fear in her eyes, they knew she was just as confused as they were.

                "Why are you guys on top of me?" She asked.  "What's going on?"

                "We could ask you the same!" Mog asked. "If they hadn't stopped you, you would have obliterated this town!"

                "What are you talking about?" Terra asked.

                "You had started to cast Ultima, Terra!" Cloud said. Her face froze in horror.

                "I… What?" She stuttered. If she hadn't been sitting on the ground, she would have fallen backwards.

                "What is it Terra?" Sabin asked, truly concerned.

                "It was that dream again. Kefka was there, he ordered me to destroy my father…  I started chanting… and then I saw you two diving at me." She explained. Sabin looked from the group to her.

                "Terra, you were casting that spell for real. Except it wasn't your father that was the target. It was us!" Samus said.

                "Do you think Sepiroth did this? Or Mother Brain?" Tron asked. The others shook their heads.

                "The Brain doesn't have that kind of power. As for Sepiroth, he doesn't resort to such tactics. He's more direct." Samus and Cloud replied. Terra started to shake. She had almost killed her entire group of friends in the blink of an eye. The dream had been more than a dream this time. It's like she was living it. Or even worse, being controlled by it.

                "Cloud can I borrow your summon materia again?" Terra asked. Cloud held back, but decided that if she went berserk, Sabin would be able to stop her in time.

                "Which one would you like?" He asked. She requested Ifrit, Ramuh and Shiva. She placed them in a semi-circle in front of her and closed her eyes. Sabin had placed his hand on her shoulder and his eyes also closed. Soon Terra was spiraling downwards into the darkness of her mind. She felt her spirit land softly on a rock and she stood. In front of her were the three espers she most closely knew, besides her father of course. The three were quiet and communing amongst themselves. Upon her arrival, they seemed even more disturbed.

                "Terra we can't keep meeting like this. It is very taxing for all of us. You, most of all since your magic abilities are steadily weaker." Shiva said calmly.

                "I understand that, but I must know what has been happening to me. It's more than a dream isn't it?" She asked the group. Ramuh hesitated. He looked amongst his kind, not sure of how to proceed. Finally Ifrit stepped forward.

                "You feel it as well. As you know, magic flourishes in this world, though not quite as we could experience it back in ours. With magic being able to exist…" His words began to falter.

                "If magic exists, then he does as well…" Shiva muttered. 

"Who exists?" Came a voice from beside Terra. Sabin sat beside her, looking up at the group. 

                "He mustn't be here!" Shiva cried. "Even now he is endangered by the evil one's spirit." The goddess of ice held her hands forward and sent Sabin's spirit flying backwards. As his spirit did, so did his body. He slammed into the nearest wall, his eyes remaining closed.

                "What's his plan?" Terra asked. She saw in the eyes of the espers the answer she already knew. She slowly opened her eyes as the others stared at her. Shadow and Mog were helping Sabin to his feet, while Cloud snatched up the Summon materia.

                "What did you find out?" Samus asked, helping Terra stand.

                "Something I feared more than anyone or anything." She said, extra emphasis on "thing". Sabin moved to her side.

                "Kefka is alive." He stated.

*                              *                              *

                After a lengthy description of Kefka from Sabin's group, they had suddenly become aware of an increasingly loud noise off in the distance. It also seemed to be coming closer. They stood from the table and walked outside to see a massive flying craft land a short ways from the town.

                "Well it's about damn time!" Barrett said behind the group. They made their way to the Highwind and stepped aboard.

                "Welcome aboard everyone. This is only a temporary fix for her, but she'll hold. We couldn't repair the Falcon just yet. Need more supplies." Cid explained. Setzer nodded, while he watched out the windshield.

                "The repairs weren't too severe, and with our combined knowledge, and a lil luck mind you, we got her off the ground. Now if you'll excuse me, nothing beats the feeling of that wind whipping around your body." Setzer said, heading for the stairs to the deck.

                "He seems to be in better spirits as soon as he's in the air." Cloud commented. Terra nodded her agreement and moved to the front of the craft. She had been unusually silent since her meeting with the espers.

                "You okay Terra?" Tifa asked, coming up beside the green haired woman.

                "I… No. No I'm not okay." She said, hesitating.

                "What is it?" Cid asked moving forward. They told him about the experiences at the Inn. He hardly could believe that a spirit could control something mortal.

                "Sabin, I want you to put me in a place where I can't hurt anyone!" Terra cried, falling to her knees. "He controlled me twice already, and I'm sure he'll try again!"

                "Twice? There was only that once in the Inn. Wasn't there?" Cloud asked. She shook her head and told them about how she had cast the magic that threatened Tifa and the others. She started to softly cry trying to keep her emotions in check, but the pain pushing through.

                "Terra, we're here together. We'll keep you under control." Sabin suggested. She looked up at him, almost angry.

                "No you won't. You can't watch me all the time. As soon as your back is turned, that's when he'll strike. I just know it. You don't know him like I do. I was under his power. I've seen the terrible things he's done!" She screamed. The others shrank back from her at this outburst. Sabin tried to go up to her, but when he saw the fire in her eyes, he flinched and backed away.

                "There is one place we could take her." Cloud said softly. He slowly walked to the helm, watching Terra as if waiting for confirmation to follow through.

                "Do it!" She said coldly. Cloud set the controls for the northern continent. He couldn't think of a place further from civilization. If this Kefka did take control of her, and he was capable of the things she was talking about, innocent lives would be lost. He couldn't allow that to happen. No one moved towards Terra, at first. Then, after a moment, Sabin got fed up and walked up to her. Her icy cold looks did nothing to hold him off this time. He grabbed her by the shoulders and lifted her to her feet. He prayed she would forgive him. He raised his hand and slapped her across the face.

                "By the name of Figaro, snap out of it Terra!" He roared. "You've never shown weakness like this. We've defeated Kefka, we can do it again. I will not let you be reduced to this state!" The others held back, waiting for the outburst that would surely ensue. But nothing happened. She simply fell into his arms and started sobbing uncontrollably. Sabin nodded to Cloud and he reversed course.

                "Sabin I'm so sorry. I don't know what happened to me. I was just so scared!" She cried, her face buried into his shoulder.

                "It's okay. We'll fight this together. All of us." He said softly. He led her to a room where she quickly fell asleep. 


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 14

                Kefka's spirit floated outside the Highwind. Some force was keeping him from entering the craft. He could sense great power from spirits he once controlled. The espers no doubt. He cursed under his breath as he searched for a way into the craft. He would have his revenge for what they did to him. How could they possibly destroy a god? The world they spoke so highly of lay in ruin. How they hugged and laughed and fixed cities. It sickened him to the very core. He felt like vomiting, even though it was an impossibility for him in his current state. Then something else caught his attention, a large flaring of power from somewhere down on the landscape. He 'floated' down to a mountain region and came across a cave. The cave was the source of the power he felt. What was more, he could sense magical energies that had recently been cast. Inside the cave he saw a giant floating… brain? Though it had eyes and was capable of speech. This was made quite clear when it started asking who had entered it's cave. Though Kefka had no direct way of responding, he knew this brain would be able to communicate with him another way. He floated over to the chamber and started his possession process. Their minds started to merge, but he was blasted back by a wall of force. This one would never allow him to become his mortal shell. He once again returned to the chamber and placed his hands near the brain. She could see who Kefka was, what he had done, why he was like he was. He also learned a great deal about the Mother Brain. He saw her plans and knew they would cause disruption but in the end they would fail. She did not know Terra and the others like he did. He knew how friendship and loved worked. She had only dealt with Samus, a lone warrior with what seemed a heart of ice. He told her of his ability to capture Terra's body, but only if she was even somewhat alone. He also fully briefed her on magic and it's capabilities. He then broke the link and went after the Highwind. He could sense Terra's presence, so he knew exactly where they were. He flew towards them at great speed and eventually saw the parked Highwind. It was near a town, and it was empty. Now was the time to hunt out Terra once more.

*                              *                              *

                "I don't know why you put up with her." Sepiroth said to Ridley as they searched out Cloud.

                "I owe her much, but it's only a farce. I would rather see her destroyed then serve under her, though she does have some benefits." He said. Sepiroth could see that Ridley would be a great leader, but lacked the power to control an army the way the Brain could. He began to wonder what this demon could possibly owe such an incompetent leader.

                "Did you bring the device?" Sepiroth asked. Ridley revealed a small grey orb clutched in his talons. They were getting close the Cloud now. His sense materia glowed brightly as it homed in on Cloud. They could see a town on the horizon so they slowed their approach. 

                "How are we going to get this to work? This town will see us coming a mile away and I'm sure they won't be thrilled to see either of us." Ridley asked, landing on the ground. Sepiroth smiled evilly.

                "It'll be easier then you think. What good is being evil if you can't have a lil fun?" He gripped his sword and a green materia flared. A small house exploded in flames.

                "I like you're style Sepiroth. Let's go to it. Just remember to stay to the plan!" Ridley said as he lept into the air and veered towards the town. He flew by a house and slashed his tail through the roof. He was beginning to enjoy himself when he saw the blur of a missile scream just left of his head. 

                "You're getting slow Samus! You're usually quicker to action then that!" Ridley said, diving in. He dodged another missile and grabbed her with is left hand.

                "Sorry to disappoint you, I was busy!" She said in a mocking tone. Ridley sneered and threw her into a brick wall. The wall gave in and collapsed on top of her. He chuckled, but only briefly as a rather large boulder fell on top of him. Mog stopped his dance just long enough to smile, then went back into his 'Earth Blues' routine. Ridley smashed the boulder and flew into the sky. His eyes darted back and forth. Where was the target? He couldn't complete his mission if the target didn't appear. For that matter, where was Sepiroth? He looked back outside the town to see him still cackling with laughter, incinerating one house after another. A small group of the heroes were on their way to face him. Ridley dodged left as Samus pulled herself free and fired a charged ice beam. Then he found his target. Or rather his target found him. Once again an Aura bolt blasted Ridley from behind, knocking him to the ground.

                "Blast you humans. You'll regret that!" Ridley swung his spiked tail at Sabin, who nimbly dodged. He struck out again and Sabin jumped, only to be caught in Ridley's right hand. He grinned as Sabin disappeared in a flash of light.

                "SABIN!" came a cry from the left. The green haired one came running at him, then something about her changed. Her skin became more like fur and she lost most of her human resemblance. She then 'flew' at Ridley, catching him in mid-air. She was now almost equal in size to him and twice as strong. He was flung to the ground and his right hand forced open. The device had been cracked and was useless. His tail knocked the woman from him and he managed to get back into the air.

                "Sepiroth! Mission accomplished! Let's get out of here!" he said as he retreated. Sepiroth however took the time to torch on more building before fleeing.

                "Cid, Tifa, Everyone, get those fires out! Save the town!" Mega man called as he equipped his water cannon. It wasn't very powerful, but it would quickly generate water of it's own, therefore an unlimited supply. The magic users started using water spells as fast as they could, while Samus used her ice beam. Eventually all the fires had been put out, though there wasn't much left of the town. A great silence fell over the group. Terra was sobbing on the ground, back in her human form. What had become of Sabin? Why such a blatant attack with such a weak goal? Sepiroth could have obliterated the town easily, yet they made a point of searching out Sabin. Something wasn't right, yet no one knew what. Terra stopped crying and walked back towards the Highwind. However no one seemed to notice the odd way in which she walked. It seemed almost forced. They returned to the Highwind after doing what they could to comfort the people that had survived the attack. Terra had gone to her room, and they felt it best to leave her alone for now.

                "So now what do we do?" Tifa asked. No one seemed to know. Sepiroth and Ridley had disappeared into the plains, and since neither could be scanned, they couldn't follow them. At a loss, they lifted off and made their way back to the falcon. At least they might be able to accomplish one goal. Besides, two airships were better then one. They'd have more options that way. They just hoped Sabin would be okay. Wherever he was.


End file.
